UN chief urges 'ambitious' emission cuts

UN chief Ban Ki-Moon voiced optimism that the landmark UN climate talks would lead to binding limits for harmful emissions and asked countries to set "ambitious" targets, in comments broadcast on Sunday.

"I am convinced that the conference in Copenhagen will give us a strong and important political accord which will then be the basis for an accord that is legally binding," the UN Secretary-General said in a pre-recorded interview due to be broadcast on French television channel TV5.

The accord must include "ambitious targets for the reduction of greenhouse emissions in the medium-term by developed countries" and "equally ambitious targets for developing countries to limit their emissions," he said.

He added that he hoped the accord reached at the Copenhagen talks would include USD 10 billion of financial support to help developing countries adapt to the emissions changes.

The UN's top climate official Yvo de Boer said on Sunday that three times that amount will be needed over the coming three years however.

Ban said USD 10 billion was a "short-term" financing aim to serve until the accord enters force, hopefully in 2010, and that he hoped up to USD 100 billion would be made available later.